Of every stock in the S&P 500, not many have had worse starts to 2026 than advertising technology giant AppLovin (NASDAQ: APP). After delivering a return of more than 700% in 2024 over 100% in 2025, shares of APP are now down over 40% this year.
This weakness stems from a variety of factors. At the start of the year, AppLovin was trading near its all-time high. But the market has hammered software names in general in 2026. Additionally, a new competitive threat—specific to AppLovin—knocked shares down by a whopping 16% on Feb. 4. Then, as the market reacted to the company’s latest earnings, APP dropped nearly 20% on Feb. 12.
